While tomfoolery and mythical love spells are still on the bill in this production of Shakespear’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the set, scene, and even the language are peppered with a distinctly Asian flavor. In San Francisco's Curran Theatre this month, Director Tim Supple's rendition of this comical classic sold out seats across the globe (Sydney, London, and Bombay to name a few). He combines the tales, wit, and complicated love triangles with glittering costumes, traditional music, and brown beauties à la Bollywood cinema.

The players, designers, and stage management all hail from India or Sri Lanka and represent the rich cultural diversity of the region. The play is in English for about half the time, while the other half delivers passionate dialogue uttered in Hindi, Tamil, Malyalam, Marathi, Bengali, and Sanskrit. Though Hermia's ardent declaration of love for Lysander touched the hearts of those watching, Lysander's response in Bengali fell on dead ears. If you're like me and haven't read the play since high school, I suggest grabbing the synopsis from the playbill and giving it a close read. I'm guessing it was these lost-in-translation moments that left the theater half empty after intermission.

The cast proved to be athletic, spirited, and energetic as they climbed, danced, and flitted about like born pixies. Peaseblossom (and other characters) climbed gracefully up draped swaths of cloth using just their arms. A mirthful Puck was hilarious, and though most of his lines were in Hindi, spectators laughed with him as he enchanted the young lovers. Nick Bottom’s brand of slapstick was a welcome balance with the dramatic love story and quarrelsome fairy king and queen. The quartet of young lovers gave fervent performances, each character outdoing the other. Though I was expecting more dancing and action, the enthusiasm of the cast and their colorful performances made the three-and-a-half-hour performance worth it—in fact, this Asian twist on Midsummer's Old English roots made me want to hop the next flight to India.